Buzzfeed is reporting that Jim Fouts of Warren Michigan was almost kicked out of Sunday’s Democratic debate in Flint MI, because he showed support for Bernie Sanders. Fouts, who was sitting behind Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, said he was complimenting Sen. Bernie Sanders. But staffers for the DNC said Fouts was “being very disruptive.”

The mayor said he and his assistant were pulled aside by security during a commercial break and were told that people had asked for him to be removed.

“The sergeant-at-arms said, ‘The people that run this want you ejected, they don’t want you here,’” Fouts said.

When asked if it was Wasserman Schultz making the request, Fouts said, “The security guy said, ‘Don’t say I said it.’”

Fouts, an Independent mayor who attended both the Republican and Democratic debates in his home state, commented on the noticeable differences between the two events.